And so, according to Pat Bowlen’s official decree, the Broncos have a Pro Bowl quarterback for sale.

Now all they have to hope is that the next Josh McDaniels-Brian Xanders trade doesn’t turn out like the last one they tried to make. That’s how they got in this mess in the first place.

The kid coach and GM tried to swing a deal for Matt Cassel and, well, you know the rest of the story. That would have been the first trade consummated by the two in their new roles. Instead, their first deal will involve shipping Jay Cutler to the highest bidder.

They may have some help along the way. His name is Bus Cook.

Cook, Cutler’s Hattiesburg, Miss.-based agent, didn’t return the latest phone call from The Post. But if the Cutler deal is anything like other major NFL trades in recent years, he’ll be in the middle of it.

Cook could impact where Cutler lands. That’s assuming the Broncos give him permission to talk to other teams, which is typical when a disgruntled player has asked for a trade.

NFL insiders contacted by The Post, among them former Broncos general manager Ted Sundquist, envision Cook being involved.

“In the past, when we tried to trade guys, we did exactly the same thing,” Sundquist said. “It’s like, ‘We’ll work our end, you work your end, and we’ll see what we come up with, what deal makes the most sense for either side.’

“It’s one more line in the water. That’s the best analogy.”

The Broncos have no obligation to let Cook talk to other teams, but they’ve let agents get involved before. When they traded Ashley Lelie to Atlanta, for instance. Why? Because there’s no downside. If Cook were to set up trade parameters with another team, McDaniels and Xanders could simply pass on the deal.

One certainty in all this is that, now that the Broncos have announced their intention to deal Cutler, Cook’s phone will be ringing. And if he doesn’t have permission to talk to other teams about Cutler?

“You get around it,” said one NFL agent. “You talk about another player and then you say, ‘Hypothetically, if this player were free . . .’ Teams are going to call and the first thing they’re going to want to know with Bus is: Does Cutler want to go to their team? And the second thing is, if they’re receptive to a deal, is he looking for a new contract?”

In any scenario, Cook and Cutler don’t have much leverage. In the end, the Broncos can trade Cutler to any team. And since he has three years remaining on his contract, he’s not in a position to demand that an extension get worked out before a trade.

Not that Cook couldn’t impact negotiations. Case in point: If Cook doesn’t want Cutler traded to Cleveland, where Eric Mangini, like McDaniels a Bill Belichick disciple, is the head coach, the Browns still could pursue a deal, but it wouldn’t make much sense to acquire a disgruntled player, particularly given the price Cutler is expected to net.

“A player doesn’t have much recourse if he doesn’t like the trade, other than to withhold his services,” Sundquist said. “It’s very similar to what Jake (Plummer) did with Tampa Bay. He just didn’t report.”

The most likely scenario to play out is that the Broncos swing a deal with a team that, in time, will give Cutler a contract extension, probably in the $100 million-plus range. In time, but not before the trade. It would be different if Cutler were in the final year of his deal, but not now.

“This kid is going to get paid,” said the agent. “If he’s not going to get paid today, he’s going to get paid tomorrow. If you’re going to give a boatload of stuff to the Broncos, you’re going to pay him. Bus still has leverage, but he doesn’t need to use it now. He’s not going anywhere. He doesn’t have to get that contract now.”

CenturyLink, the telecommunications company that ended its sponsorship agreement with Broncos linebacker Brandon Marshall because of his protests during the national anthem last year, said it will not terminate its agreement with current client Emmanuel Sanders.